You might expect a fair few care home residents to have arthritis, but you might be surprised to hear that a number of staff probably do too...

In fact Arthritis affects a staggering nine million people in the UK and is the leading cause of physical disability in the UK.  And it isn’t just a disease that affects older people – you can develop arthritis at any age – there are around 27,000 under the age of 25 with arthritis in the UK.
Despite its prevalence, arthritis is one of the most misrepresented and least understood disorders in the medical lexicon.  It has some 200 inflammatory and degenerative forms – including lupus, gout and RSI, as well as osteoarthritis, and tennis elbow. The chief symptom common to all types of arthritis is long term and often severe pain - and its consequent knot of psychosocial issues. Last year, nine out of ten callers to the Arthritis Care’s Helpline wanted help to cope with their pain. No cure has yet been found for arthritis, and it remains the UK’s greatest single cause of physical disability, responsible for most of the UK’s time off work, and much ill-health retirement.
Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis. It usually develops gradually, over time. Several different joints can be affected, but osteoarthritis is most frequently seen in the hands, knees, hips, feet and spine. There is no known cause for osteoarthritis, but it is more common among women. Osteoarthritis can develop at any age, although it occurs more frequently in older people. Injury to a joint can also trigger osteoarthritis, even many years later.